REALITY IN REAL ESTATE NOVEMBER, 2010
PERSONAL CLIENT NEWSLETTER
ISSUE FOUR
z Byron Goert 604-859-2341
Weʼre on the verge of the worst winter in 50 years! Weather that is... and real estate is on the brink of making some splashes of its own! Kind of like the splashes a dinghy makes when bumping up beside a cruise-liner. Well it seems I canʼt get away from the question: “Howʼs the market doing?” And itʼs getting tougher to answer, Iʼm not going to lie. Especially when the media canʼt seem to make up its mind which way they want to spin it.
Byron Goertz Office: 604-859-2341 Cell: 778-878-0262 Email: byrongoertz@remax.net Website: www.byrongoertz.com
R E /M AX
L I T T L E O A K R E A L T Y #9-2630 Bourquin W.Abbotsford, BC V2S 5N7
Its been a year of challenges, particularly when compared to the past half decade. And with the HST, competition bureau and the recent economic woes, itʼs not a big surprise. What is a surprise to me however, is the amount of time people are taking to get into the game. In the past 6 months, Iʼve seen median prices drop about $15,000 and the average sales to asking ratio has also dropped, leaving another $4,000 $6,000 in possible savings to potential home buyers. Its also taking about 30 days longer for sellers to sell. What does this mean? It means itʼs a great time to buy a home. The selection has rarely
been this good and the opportunity is ripe for the buyer. Its a shame that only a few are taking advantage. Iʼm sure everyone will figure it out eventually, they always do. But by the time the masses begin to agree, it will be business as usual and the opportunity for many will have passed. Are Canada-wide averages portrayed in the media truly reflective of your immediate market? Our local market fluctuates constantly and changes can be significant. To learn how these market conditions impact your property selling or purchasing decisions, call me and Iʼd be happy to provide an in depth analysis of your current position. Call or email me today for my current list of Abbotsfordʼs Best Buys.
Byron
Canadians find half-priced homes, huge inventory in southern U.S. despite foreclosure freeze BY FRANK O'BRIEN Lydia Clarke believes she has found a winning bet for Canadians playing in the Las Vegas housing market. The Vegas-based president of Investment Properties International specializes in buying real estate through foreclosure auctions in the U.S. gaming capital, fixing them up and either flipping them or renting them out. The odds, and the business, are good, she claims. Clarke said most of her clients are Western Canadians, using a muscular loonie and low interest rates to ante up in a city where 80 per cent of the listings are "short sales" or bank-ordered foreclosures, and cash is king. "Simply put, Las Vegas home values have dropped by more than half of what they were bought for five or six years ago," Clarke said, "Many people who purchased or refinanced now owe much more on their homes than they are worth." Some distressed buyers will try for a short sale, where the lender forgives the difference in the sale price and the mortgage owing to get some of the money back. Other owners simply walk away and let the home fall into foreclosure. There was a nation-leading 108,000 home foreclosures in Vegas in the first eight months of this year, nearly 14,000 in August alone, according to Californiabased RealtyTrac, which monitors the U.S. foreclosure action. Clarke said Canadians could make money through buy-and-hold or through positive cash flow as a rental. As an example she used a Las Vegas three-bedroom, 2.5-bath house in a good neighbourhood that she bought at auction for US$103,000. Such a house can be given a quick makeover for US$1,200 and either resold for a profit or rented out, she told the Jurock Real Estate Outlook conference in September.
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DO YOU HAVE A BUYER FOR THESE FEATURED LISTINGS?
Buying property as a cheap vacation home seems to be the best play. The rental vacancy rate in Las Vegas is 11 per cent - compared to a 7 per cent U.S. average and the unemployment rate is 14.5 per cent. As well, nearly a third of Las Vegas multifamily building owners are in default on their commercial loans, the highest in the country, according to Trepp LLC, a New York-based commercial real estate and analytics firm. All of this makes the rental market a gamble. Still, a Canadian investor can buy two-bedroom condominiums in Sin City for less than $100 per square foot, or about a third of the price in a B.C. resort. And as one conference delegate noted: "I'd rather be in Vegas than Cranbrook on a Saturday night."
3443 Creston Drive
• 1980 SQ FT Rancher; 9400 SQ FT Lot
$424,900
$189,900
• 3 BEDROOMS; 2 BATHROOMS
Donʼt forget that Iʼm never too busy for your referrals! Ask me how you can earn a referral fee from me.
• NEW ROOF; NEWER DRIVEWAY; HEAT PUMP • MINUTES FROM ALL AMENITIES • EVERYTHING ALL ON ONE LEVEL • VISIT http://www.3443creston.canbyours.com
#228-9855 Quarry rd • 1170 SQ FT
Byron Goertz
• 2 BEDROOM; 2 BATHROOM TOWNHOUSE
Office: 604-859-2341 Cell: 778-878-0262 Email: byrongoertz@remax.net Website: www.byrongoertz.com
• MINUTES TO DOWNTOWN CHILLIWACK • CUSTOM PINE KITCHEN; JETTED SOAKER TUB • SKY LIGHTS FOR BRIGHTNESS • CUSTOM STONE FIREPLACE • VISIT http://www.unit228.canbyours.com
Each office is independently owned and operated. Not intended to breach any existing agency relationships.
16th annual REALTORS® Care Blanket Drive **November 29 - December 6, 2010** Every year, Lower Mainland REALTORS® organize a Blanket Drive to collect blankets and warm and/or waterproof clothing to help people in need stave off the winter cold and wet. The Drive is coordinated by numerous REALTOR® volunteers and dozens of real estate offices across the Fraser Valley, Greater Vancouver and Chilliwack and district serving as drop-off locations. Thousands of REALTORS® and members of the public generously donate to the cause. Last year, in the entire Lower Mainland, they helped to donate and collect an astounding 4,000+ bags of blankets and clothing — bags the size of green garbage bags stuffed full. Anyone can donate anytime between November 29 and December 6 (during business hours) at one of 40 locations in the Fraser Valley. Please refrain from dropping donations off before the Drive begins, as offices don't have adequate storage. Please donate ANY of these items, either NEW or gently used and clean:
• • • • • • • •
blankets, sleeping bags, bedding (sheets and blankets) winter jackets, coats, rain coats, rain ponchos, windbreakers (men, women and children) sweaters, long-sleeved shirts, turtlenecks, sweatshirts, fleece vests, pullovers pants, sweatpants, jeans long underwear, scarves, hats, mitts, gloves, toques NEW underwear and socks shoes and boots, especially waterproof any clothing offering warmth and/or protection from the elements
Please do not donate household items, summer clothing, furniture, books, toys, toiletries, etc. Save them for another time — this is a drive for warm clothing and bedding for people who are homeless! Also, our charities do not have the funds to launder these items, so ask that they are clean and useable, so as to avoid items being recycled or thrown out.
Each office is independently owned and operated. Not intended to breach any existing agency relationships.
Do you need a(n)... • • • • • • • • • • • •
Financial advisor Accountant Electrician Painter Plumber Home inspector Mortgage expert Handyman Home builder Insurance agent Lawyer Travel agent
SERGE L. BLANCHETTE
Financial Advisor
office: (604) 870-9890 toll free: 1-866-878-2288 2955 Immel Street, Unit #103, Abbotsford, BC V2S 7E6 serge.blanchette@edwardjones.com Contact me today. I would be happy to develop a strategy to help you achieve your financial goals.
Let me recommend someone to you who can get the job done!
Do you know someone who is thinking of buying their first home? Now may be their best opportunity to maximize their purchasing power. Have them call me today. Iʼd be happy to answer any questions they might have.
Byron Goertz Office: 604-859-2341 Cell: 778-878-0262 Email: byrongoertz@remax.net Website: www.byrongoertz.com
tly where your property • If you want to know exac bor cut the grass. line is, just watch your neigh g a home is that no matter • The trouble with ownin at something you where you sit, youʼre looking should be doing. you're alive, miss a • If you think no one cares couple of house payments.
And by the way, Iʼm never to busy for your referrals. In fact, my business depends on them. I look forward to speaking with you soon. Each office is independently owned and operated. Not intended to breach any existing agency relationships.